Saturday, March 31, 2018

Chiropractic adjustment or spinal adjustment are terms used by a
chiropractic physician to describe the act of correcting bones of the
spine that are misaligned. It is also called spinal manipulation at
times by other health care professionals. Chiropractic adjustments are
performed with special instruments or specific hands on techniques to
adjust the spinal bones back into their proper position. Chiropractic
adjustments effectively reduce pain and restore normal function of the
joints affected. Spinal manipulation has been documented as being used
in ancient times by the Egyptians and by Hippocrates.

People often
notice a popping sound when receiving a chiropractic adjustment. This
sound is the result of air or nitrogen gas being released when the bone
moves. Adjustments are performed by applying specific pressure to the
vertebra using parts of the vertebra or structures surrounding it as
levers.

Spinal manipulation helps to restore normal motion and
function of the vertebral joint. There are several different adjustment
techniques performed by chiropractors. Some require the use of hands
while others require the use of instruments that are specially designed
for this.

They may perform a release technique. This involves a
gentle constant pressure over the vertebra to help it move back into
position. Chiropractors may also use special tables that have sections
that drop down. This technique involves a quick thrust at the same time
the table drops. The dropping of the table assists the adjustment to
provide a deeper thrust with less force. It also helps to avoid twisting
motions that other techniques require.

Special spring loaded or
electronic instruments have been designed to perform chiropractic
adjustments. Instrument adjusting often involves the most gentle
techniques for performing spinal manipulation. It allows for an
adjustment that is a higher velocity requiring less force to move the
bones.

Chiropractic adjustments are widely used to help with
various musculoskeletal problems and other conditions in the body. They
have proven to be effective for reducing stress, improving range of
motion and restoring normal function of the nerves that control every
cell and organ in the body. People seek out chiropractic care for
conditions such as neck pain, back pain, headaches and numbness or
tingling in the arms or legs. Chiropractic is effective in restoring
normal function of the musculoskeletal system rather than just treating
the symptoms. Chiropractic adjustments are safe and effective. The
chances of being injured by a chiropractic adjustment are extremely low.
They also support the body's natural ability to heal itself.

Wednesday, March 28, 2018

The techniques used in chiropractic and neck pain have been
associated for over 2,000 years. Long before this field of conservative
medicine has been recognized by the mainstream medical community in the
United States, chiropractic was being widely used in the early
civilizations of Greece, India, and China to alleviate neck pain and
other forms of pain.

A spinal adjustment to treat neck pain?

A
common misrepresentation of chiropractic care is that chiropractors
work merely by snapping the neck into different directions until
something luckily closes into place. While chiropractors are widely
credited for their spinal adjustment techniques (In the case of the
neck, it is called cervical adjustment.), they also use a wide range of
gentle non-force and soft-tissue therapeutic tools, such as massage
therapy, lifestyle suggestions, and an exercise program to supplement
the primary spinal adjustment.

How effective is chiropractic for neck pain?

Chiropractors
believe that a slight maladjustment in the alignment of the spine
causes tremendous setbacks in the functioning of the nervous system.
Enter neck and back pain, and other body pain which is the result of
these setbacks. Through hands-on spinal adjustment, chiropractors can
fix the spine and allow the body room to heal itself more quickly.
Chiropractic care usually requires more than one session of spinal
adjustments and the supplementary therapeutic solutions to fully
alleviate the pain and bring back the body's healthy condition.

Does chiropractic workon all neck issues?

Chiropractic
and neck pains do not always go together, but they often do. In cases
where the pain is induced by postural strain (the kind caused by sitting
in a bad posture in front of the computer the entire day), traumatic
injury (caused by whiplash or other injuries from automobile accidents,
herniated and ruptured discs, and osteoarthritis and other degenerative
processes reminiscent of aging, chiropractic can be a viable solution.
It is important, though, that the chiropractor employ all diagnostic
tools to thoroughly examine other factors that may be causing the pain.
When the practitioner detects a fracture or an organic disease, he may
have to refer the patient to another specialist who can administer the
appropriate drugs and other treatments for the specific conditions.

Who can receive spinal adjustments for to treat the neck?

Practically
everybody may receive chiropractic care for pain, but it is imperative
that a chiropractor implements a physical and neurological checkup first
before devising a chiropractic program for his patient. Posture is one
of the first things to be examined. If the chiropractor detects an
abnormal curvature of the spine or if one of the shoulders or hips is
lower than the other, there must be reason to believe that something is
wrong. However, posture is not the only important thing and does not
completely indicate the need for chiropractic care. The practitioner
also examines the extremity joints, muscle tone and strength in the
middle and upper back, and the range of motion of the bones.

Sunday, March 25, 2018

I'm a big fan of massage therapy, but I always say that if I had to choose between receiving a chiropractic adjustment or a massage, I would always choose a chiropractic adjustment. I find that, because chiropractic is an entire system of health care that addresses the musculo-skeletal and the nervous system, it has a profound effect on, not only relaxing the muscles, but rebalancing the alignment of the spine as well as relaxing muscles and restoring normal nerve function. Massage is very effective at relaxing muscles and increasing circulation, and in fact, many chiropractors use massage therapy in their practices, either by hiring massage therapist to do massage therapy on their patients or many chiropractors are trained to use massage therapy techniques on their patients directly.

In my practice, I use a combination of muscle techniques, including traditional Swedish massage, myofascial release and trigger point therapy. I also use various topical creams like homeopathic ointments that contain onycha or turmile. Massage therapists are highly trained at massage therapy but they're not doctors and they're not licensed to prescribe or orders test like xrays. Chiropractors are doctors of chiropractic and they are licensed to diagnose as well as to order Xrays and other diagnostic tests. Chiropractors and massage therapists have worked together for a long time and they always will. They have a very similar philosophy but massage therapy will not realign your spine.

It will not have quite the same profound effect on the nervous system that chiropractic. Another topic that's important to throw in the mix here is the issue of exercise. Massage therapy is not a substitute for exercise, and proper stretching and strengthening is really important to maintain normal muscle tone. So, it's important to include massage, chiropractic and exercise into your therapeutic regieme.

Thursday, March 22, 2018

The continued rise in the usage of chiropractic care has been
ongoing. Studies continue to demonstrate the numbers rising and the
increase of people using chiropractic health care. In one issue of American Journal of Public Health,
a study was published entitled "Use of Chiropractic Services from 1895
through 1991 in the United States and Canada". The conclusion of this
study was that the number of visits to chiropractors has more than
doubled in the past 20 years. Many recommend this particular treatment
method due to the non-invasive approach and its insistence on awakening
the body's natural ability to heal and become healthier, stronger and
more resilient.

The Healing Benefits Of Chiropractic

Most
people in their everyday lives have things happen that effect their
bodies. Dysfunction in their musculoskeletal system can benefit from
chiropractic care. From pain relief, injury rehabilitation, optimal
athletic performance, aging and improved immune function. These are all
some the benefits a person may undergo when they have misaligned spine,
back, or neck. For people who need to be physically active for their
work, sport and daily responsibilities, the presence of such dysfunction
disables them from performing well. This is due to the fact that any
form of movement on the traumatized area of the body can result in
stress and possibly more damage causing more pain and discomfort.

Regardless
of the cause of your initial pain and problems, among the many benefits
research shows you may enjoy as a result of chiropractic care are as
follows:

• better movement and improved circulation

• lower levels of lactic acid

• higher oxygenation and better nutrient delivery to cells

• increased flexibility

• improved comfort and decrease or elimination of pain

• Faster recovery time

• Reduced muscle spasm

• Prevention of future injury and improved immune function

• More relaxed feeling

The Overall Approach

If
you want to enhance the benefits of chiropractic care, it is best to
combine your efforts with an overall approach to your health and well
being. Health is not merely the absence of pain and symptoms. If you
have ever had a cavity, you know that by the time the pain shows up, the
damage to your tooth is already there. The healthier you are, and the
healthier you become the greater the potential benefits of your
chiropractic care. Minimise dis-ease and maximise your health. The
relief from any pressure or source of discomfort and irritation will
allow your body to attain maximum mobility and better performance.

Some general recommendations to develop a routine and get the maximum health benefits are the following:

· Maximise your oxygen intake through some forms of aerobic and anaerobic exercise.

Additional Benefits of Chiropractic Care

There is still a small percentage of the population who have misconceptions about the benefits of chiropractic
care. However, research continues to be done, changing these
perceptions and gradually more of the scientific community are showing
greater interest in the healing potential that chiropractic may
represent. One of the misconceptions being that it is not a valid form
of treatment and is used only for mild cases of back pain, headaches,
and the like. However, chiropractic adjustments are being researched to
investigate the benefits even to those suffering from extreme cases of
spinal or vertebral misalignment and other health problems.

Many chiropractors have patients who have benefited beyond musculoskeletal problems, these include:

• women may have improved comfort during pregnancy and labour

• minimise the risk of scoliosis in an infant and improve their postural development.

Some of the results and benefits reported from patients who have undergone chiropractic care include the following:

• Improved immune and nervous system function

• greater vitality

• improved breathing and exercising

• improved digestion and bowel function

• improved vision

• Improved overall health.

Study and research continues as we look at the cause of health and the benefits of chiropractic care!

Following
chiropractic adjustments, your body may start to improve movement and
alignment of the spine and spinal structures. In many cases, a patient
will immediately experience relief for a problem soon after undergoing
chiropractic care. Restoring and building health from the inside is one
of the advantages of opting for chiropractic care over surgical or
medical procedures that often require a long recovery period. In other
cases if the damage or misalignment is more severe, a person may be sore
and still achy after care. Some people may take longer to heal and
demonstrate improvement, they may also need to make other lifestyle
improvements to maximise their health and wellbeing along with improved
pain free movement.

If you approach your health from the
perspective of a way of life, and give your body and mind the essentials
for maximising your health, chiropractic care may be a key ingredient.

Sunday, March 18, 2018

One of the things that my patient report to me is that one of the most profound effect that chiropractor has on them is their ability to reduce their stress level and also recover from stress.

Our cranium and our spine house our brain and spinal cord. And all of the spinal nerves that are exiting the spine, innervate every single organ and cell in our body. By adjusting the spine, when we find misalignment, restrictions or what we call subluxations, we're able to profoundly restore normal nerve function. Ad this has a profound relaxing affect on the nervous system.

I like to say that chiropractic care helps nervous system become more highly organized. We noticed that there is a profound shift in the nervous system. Particularly in the automatic nervous system. The parts of the nervous system that functions without our constant awareness. The sympathetic nervous system our the fight or flight response that most people live in all day long, shifts after chiropractic care. And the power sympathetic nervous becomes more dominate. The power sympathetic nervous system is the part of the nervous system we would like to be more active. It's the part of the nervous system that controls the immune system and digestion. It tends to slow the heart rate and decrease blood pressure to normal, So it's very important that we have a dynamic balance between these two nervous system. And chiropractic care is one of the most effective and profound ways I know to balance that nervous system.

The other thing that's really very powerful about chiropractic care is the kind of interaction you'll have with your chiropractor. Really talking about what's happening in your body. My patient report that when they go out into the world after their adjustment, their whole experience of life is very different. They feel very rested but they also feel alert. They fell calm and they're really ready to take on the world.

Friday, March 16, 2018

Every two seconds, someone in the world has a stroke. One out of every six people will have a stroke at some point in their lives. Strokes deprive brain cells of oxygen and are one of the most common causes of death, and a leading cause of preventable disability. But what causes strokes in the first place? And what can doctors do to treat them? Vaibhav Goswami takes us into the body to find out.

Thursday, March 8, 2018

Most of us associate chiropractic care with back and neck pain, and there's nothing wrong with that. After all, chiropractic care does a fantastic job with conditions associated with the spine. However, chiropractic care is not limited to just one kind of condition or area of the body. In most sports, teams have their own in-house chiropractor to help players, athletes and staff with their fitness and wellness concerns. If you read a little bit more, you will also know about a team called wellness chiropractic. What's it all about? Should you consider wellness chiropractic? If yes, how would you choose a clinic? In this post, we will try to answer some of these queries.

Knowing Wellness Chiropractic

Wellness chiropractic care deals with removing nerve interference to the best of your bodies' ability, from the CNS. The central nervous system controls primary functions of the body, and with chiropractic care it is possible to get rid of the interference that eventually impacts the CNS. Many factors lead to "subluxation," but in most cases, lifestyle factors and level of physical activities have a considerable influence. Well, wellness chiropractic is all about general wellness and living the life of your choice. You don't have to be sick or in pain to seek the expertise of a chiropractor. Many people visit a local chiropractor after a holiday, just to get the body in motion.

What Does It Involve?

A wellness chiropractor will help in improving the function of your spine and will assist in restoring the natural energy levels of the body. He or she will minimize and remove the interferences in the nervous system so that the body and mind are in sync with one another. By minimizing subluxation, the treatment will ensure that the body feels the best to heal itself as required. The process will impact the overall biochemical system, as well.

Visiting a Chiropractor

First things first, don't choose a chiropractor unless you are sure of their experience and expertise. A wellness chiropractor understands the basics of this form of treatment, and he can help you with specific concerns too. Also, wellness chiropractic care is not limited by age or other factors. Ideally, you should take your family for a simple wellness session at least once every month. You can check online to find the reviews of known clinics in your area, and references can be handy, as well. Make sure to make an appointment. People seeking wellness chiropractic care usually don't need as many initial sessions as someone with an injury.

Before you visit a wellness chiropractor, be prepared to provide a detailed history as these facts your chiropractor needs to know. In some cases, it is advisable to understand if a patient needs specialized treatment approaches.

Sunday, March 4, 2018

If you have not tried Chiropractic care yet, it might be because
your first choice when you need medical care is the status quo. You
probably don't know much about chiropractic care and what it can offer
you. Like most people, you probably call your general practitioner for
an appointment no matter what is wrong with you. Headache, backache,
joint aches, allergies... You call your normal physician without giving
it any thought at all. But the truth is you can get a lot of expert care
from your chiropractor.

Here are five reasons to go to a chiropractor.

Chiropractic
care costs less - Americans suffering from back pain spend over 60
billion dollars a year trying to seek relief, most of it unproductive.
Several workers compensation board studies found that chiropractic care
reduced medical costs by almost 30% compared with conventional care for
back pain. Studies by Blue Cross Blue Shield (BCBS) show that more of
the money you spend with a chiropractor goes to patient care.

It
works - Studies show that chiropractic care for back pain is less
expensive and more successful than other forms of treatment. In
addition, chiropractors can get you back to work faster by avoiding
drugs and surgery. Studies show that for long term relief from pain,
chiropractic care works better than drug therapy without the side
effects and chiropractic does it faster.

More than backs - Aside
from back pain, you can get medical attention for headache, joint pain,
allergies, smoking cessation, nutritional counseling, and overall
wellbeing. Many chiropractors can do sports physicals and general
employment physicals for less than you can get them done with your
general practitioner. Chiropractors look at the whole picture, not just
one symptom to find a treatment that will work best for you.

Avoids
invasive procedures - Chiropractors do not like invasive procedures so
we seek to treat a patient in such a way as to avoid surgery. The fact
is, surgery doesn't work as well as you might think it does. Surgery
costs a lot of money and caries a risk of infection, side effects and
other unsavory problems. Chiropractors seek to fix the origin of the
problem, rather than treat only the symptoms.

Health insurance
often covers it - Fortunately, many chiropractic procedures are covered
by your health insurance. We all know that insurance companies like to
find reasons not to pay for something so the fact that insurance
companies see the value in chiropractic care is more assurance that
chiropractic care is effective.

Thursday, March 1, 2018

"As a chiropractor, I think a lot about posture. And one of the activities that seems to cause a lot of stress in most people's bodies is spending prolonged periods of time at a desk or computer. So I spend a lot of time talking to people about how to have proper posture at their desk or work station. So here is the skinny. You want to sit in a chair where your sacum, or your low back, touches the back of the chair. It's best to have a chair where you can really have good back support. You want a chair that's designed for your body. So that the seat is not too deep for you, or not too shallow. You want your knees to come close to the end of where the edge of the seat is. And you want your feet to be able to touch the ground.

Most of us sit on chairs with our feet up on the rung. Or tucked up under us. And we want to make sure that the feet are actually on the floor. So adjust the height of your chair so your weight is on two feet, and two (?). That'll really distribute the weight properly through your entire muscoskeletal system, and put the least amount of strain on your body.

So let's talk about keyboards. Many people put their keyboard on a desk. Either because they're using a laptop, or that's just where they put the keyboard tray. But it's really important when you're at a keyboard, that your shoulders are dropped. So this is how you should set it up. Your shoulders should be completely dropped. And your elbows should be dropped and resting at your side. You want a right angle at your elbow. And no break at your wrist. This means that your keyboard should be about the height of your elbows.

Most people have their keyboard a little bit higher. And you might think, well what's the difference? It's just a few inches higher. But the difference is that when you have to start using the mouse, you end up engaging the elbow and the shoulder muscles. And this causes isometric contraction in those muscles. And that can really add up to a lot of pain by the end of the day.

I recommend that people get keyboard trays. The kind that screw on under your desk. You can slide them out. Get a wide one so you can put your mouse on it too. This way when you don't need your keyboard you can slide it under your desk, but when you need it you can adjust it just for the height you need for your body.

Now let's talk about the screen. The middle of the screen should be exactly at eye level. Or maybe an inch below. Many of us are putting laptops or computers on desks and the screens are a little too low. And that means that we're flexing our head forward all day. And that puts enormous strain on our neck and our shoulders. So raise your screen up a little bit. So that the middle of the screen is right at eye level. You'll be glad you did it. It'll make a really big difference."